By a Fraction of a Degree
A FFVII Fanfiction work by findthetiger129
Rated T for Violence and Language.
I do not own Final Fantasy VII, or any of the characters, trademarks or likenesses from Final Fantasy VII or its spinoffs. That honor goes to Square-Enix.
Part II: Reunion
Chapter 17, Shadows and Ninjas
December 16th [ ν ] – εуλ 0007
It was not long before Zack, Cloud, Tifa, and Nanaki left through the outer gate for the Sector 6 Slums. An hour after they left, Freya would lead the others out through the Sector 7 gate. It had been decided that they would regroup in Kalm, as Elfe had suggested. For now though, they would maintain PHS contact as necessary, and try to avoid being spotted.
Barret had been disagreeable on the idea at first, as he'd tried to suggest getting back to his plan, ergo continuing to blow up reactors and cause as much chaos as possible. However, through the combined effort of the rest of the party, they had finally gotten him to see reason. Elfe and Shears pointed out, that if he got himself arrested again, there would be no one to rescue him. Their position was such that it was too dangerous for them to step in a second time, and everyone else was leaving except for Shalua who had only been after information regarding her sister's whereabouts and had no desire to get back into terrorist activities.
Marlene was the clincher though. On hearing what everyone else was saying she looked up at him with those soft brown eyes of hers and told him she didn't want him to go away forever like Biggs and Wedge. That was when he melted. Even to the end though, he was adamant that they would find some way to keep fighting Shinra once things quieted down. By that point everyone was tired of arguing, and so they turned their attention to getting out of town.
It was now early afternoon. The first group had made it halfway out of the wastes and Cloud was glad they were headed home. The fact that Sephiroth had somehow appeared in that security footage really bothered him though. Zack was concerned about it too, and had been unusually quiet since leaving Midgar. The idea that the Silver General, especially the crazy Silver General who had skewered him on his sword, was still running around after all this time was a terrifying thought.
They had been staying clear of the roads for a while now, instead opting to go in and out of the canyons though he could tell they were getting closer and closer to the outskirts of the wastes as patches of grass were beginning to appear on the edges of the ravine they were passing through and the dramatic cliffs and depressions in the landscape were starting to slope more gently, giving way to flatter land. As they walked, Zack had pressed ahead, keeping alert for anyone who might have been following them and Cloud had been at the rear. Now that they were getting further out into the open however, Cloud pulled ahead of Tifa and Nanaki to where Zack had paused a moment to get his bearings on the crest of a hill.
His friend sighed as the two of them gazed out over the scenery for a few moments before Cloud looked up at him seriously. "Are we going to do something about this?"
Zack shrugged. "I think I'd at least like to know for sure if it's really him. But where do we even start? That security footage Shalua found was three days old. He could be anywhere by now."
"That's true," Cloud admitted. "But if it is him… I definitely don't want another Nibelheim."
Zack nodded. "I know. I don't want to see that again either."
Tifa had caught up with them at that point. "I didn't see you in Nibelheim, Cloud. How do you know about that?"
Cloud lowered his eyes to the ground. "I was there. But…" His voice trailed off.
Zack spoke up. "He was a trooper at the time. I'm not quite sure why he never came to talk to you though. I asked him about it after the first trip to the reactor."
"I was embarrassed." Cloud admitted. "I didn't actually make it into SOLDIER so they put me in the army instead."
"Then… why do your eyes glow?" Tifa asked.
"I really don't remember what happened after Sephiroth." He said. "The next thing I knew, Zack and I were out in the wastes and the Turks had picked us up. I…" He stopped, trying to think of a good way to explain but he couldn't seem to come up with the right words.
"We can talk about that when we get to Kalm. If it's up to me, I'd rather not explain it more than I have to, but let's just say for now that it involved some really bad Mako poisoning," Zack supplied. "We should keep moving. All right?"
Tifa nodded. "Yeah, you're right." With that, the four of them continued down the other side of the hill.
Freya had just left Midgar with Barret, Marlene, and Jessie. She knew the area well enough to guide them to Kalm, and she'd seen no sign that there were any trooper squads in the area, so they walked along as Barret carried his daughter on his shoulder. "So where is it we're goin' exactly?" Barret asked as they started climbing down into a ravine.
"Once we meet the others in Kalm we're going to meet someone at the Chocobo Farm who'll take us back to where we've been living." She answered. "I think you'll like it in Mideel, and it's pretty far away."
"Mideel, huh?" Barret echoed the name thoughtfully. "So how is it you ain't with Shinra anymore?"
"It's a long story." Freya walked along the ravine, eyes open for any sign of pursuit. She saw some tracks indicating some Kalm Fangs were in the area, but otherwise there was no indication of anything else alive out here save themselves.
"Been hearin' that one a lot lately," Barret observed. He balanced Marlene on his gun arm as he used his regular hand to grab handholds on the hillside.
"It can't be helped I'm afraid," Freya returned. "You'll get some answers when we get back to Kalm."
"You mean about that Sephiroth guy?" Barret asked.
"Probably."
They were reaching the end of the ravine and there was silence as the group worked to pull themselves out. Jessie was the last one up as they found themselves at the top of a hill overlooking a different canyon. She wiped the sweat from her brow. "Zack and Cloud sounded really spooked when they saw the guy in that video."
"Well of course they'd be. I was too. I was in the mako reactor when he was supposed to have died. Cloud threw him into the reactor core. People don't just spontaneously come back to life after something like that."
"Tifa's friend did that?" They walked a little further, Barret's voice echoing off the canyon walls as they walked into the gap. "He must be pretty strong."
"He and Zack both could have died. By that point he was running purely on adrenaline and willpower." Freya said, glancing around a bend in the canyon before ushering them along. "They're lucky they're even alive right now. Sephiroth was a true monster."
They walked on in silence for a bit, creeping further through the canyons, as the sun remained high in the sky, going between the sweltering heat of the intense light, and the coolness of the shadows by the canyon walls. Soon they too were coming to places where Freya could see hints of grass up ahead. It was also about that point that she spotted some evidence that Zack and his party had passed this way. She hoped they weren't catching up already. If so, she would personally make sure Zack was not going to hear the end of it… That was when she heard a voice. "Yes sir. I've found four sets of tracks matching two pairs of SOLDIER class boots, a pair of sneakers, and a set of four paws."
Was that? No, it couldn't be… She motioned for everyone behind her to be quiet and then snuck up ahead. When she saw who it was, she suppressed a grin. Elena stood at the crest of a hill up ahead, talking on a PHS and dressed in the standard dark suit. The girl had sworn she would never join the Turks, but it seemed she had eaten her words. It didn't look like there was anyone with the young woman either. Freya's grin became even wider as she stood up straight.
There was no way Tseng didn't know they were involved by now, but if he'd sent out Elena to track them… Well, he should have known better than to send a novice Turk after her. Although it could be the others had already been assigned elsewhere. Better a novice than no one at all. Balancing her shotgun over her shoulder, she walked nonchalantly up onto the hill, as Elena hung up her PHS.
"Hey Elena, it's been a while."
Elena gave a small yelp and turned around, caught completely unawares. "Freya? So it's true isn't it?" she demanded.
"I'm afraid so," Freya said.
"Why did you do it?"
"I have my reasons." She approached the blonde girl, looking her up and down. "The suit looks good on you. I like your new haircut too."
Elena seemed put off by this. "Ts-Tseng's going to want me to try to bring you in. You know that right?"
"I'm already a renegade; one more black mark in their book won't change a thing. You know that, right?"
Elena sighed. "It'll mean Rufus'll probably want to kill you now. He might have let you off if we'd just run across you by accident."
"Oh, so you know about the deal Tseng made with Rufus." Freya continued appraising the younger Turk before nonchalantly pulling her bangs out of her face. "He doesn't scare me. After all, you should know as the greatest hunter in the Turks, I can cover my tracks pretty well…"
"Why did you do it Freya?" Elena asked gravely. "I respected you, and now you've turned around… and betrayed us."
"I've betrayed nobody," Freya answered. "Not Tseng, not the Turks, not you. I followed Shinra's lead without question for years, and they still chased me out for the very loyalty they wanted from me. How's that for irony?"
Elena looked confused, which was exactly what Freya wanted. As she tried to mull this over Freya glanced back at the spot where she knew Barret and Jessie were hiding and discreetly motioned to them that they should try to slip by unnoticed.
"So where's Reno and Rude these days? Out on other assignments? I'm willing to bet Tseng's pretty shorthanded right now," Freya commented with a sly expression on her face.
"Reno's out near Junon, hunting for Sephiroth." Elena said, and the second it came out of her mouth she looked up at Freya in horror.
"Thanks," Freya offered her a grin. "Now I'll tell you something. Sephiroth was a madman. You shouldn't go near him if you want to stay alive. Consider that my tip to you for being so helpful." With that, she walked down the hill, leaving Elena deep in thought behind her.
It wasn't long after when she found signs of Barret and Jessie's passing, and she caught up with them very quickly. "What was that all about?" Jessie asked as she got their attention.
"Just picking up a little information," Freya said. "Let's move. We should reach Kalm by nightfall if we hurry."
It was evening in Kalm when the two groups found each other at the inn. Zack had taken care of accommodations there and after dinner, they retired to one of the rooms they'd rented. Barret showed up a little later having spared some time to put Marlene to bed.
"So we've left Midgar, now what?" he asked.
Zack had a thoughtful expression as he spoke. "Originally, our plan was that we'd meet a friend of ours near the Chocobo farm and fly back to Mideel with anyone who wants to come with us, but now that Sephiroth might be back in the picture, I kind of feel we should at least confirm that it's really him. He'd gone totally insane in Nibelheim. If it is him, and he's still crazy, we can't let him run around."
Cloud nodded in agreement.
"Elena told me he was headed towards Junon if you want to follow him," Freya supplied. "I probably would have gone in that direction anyway, so I could make sure Nanaki gets home safely."
Nanaki glanced at her but said nothing.
Barret spoke up at that point. "So what's the deal? Why're ya'll so jumpy about this guy?"
"Does destroying an entire village and nearly killing everyone in it sound like a good enough reason to you?" Zack leaned against the wall on the opposite side of the room from the stairs, his arms folded as he spoke. "Or maybe I should add the part where he's the most powerful SOLDIER 1st Class in existence if he's still alive."
Barret looked at him in shock. " #$%."
He shot Tifa a questioning look and she nodded sadly. "It's true. I was there too."
"How did it happen?" Jessie asked.
Zack and Cloud exchanged looks. "If you are going to travel with us, you do deserve to know," Zack said at last. "It was five years ago. Tifa remembers. I was a SOLDIER 1st Class at the time, and Cloud was an infantryman with us. Me and Sephiroth had been sent to check out the reactor in Nibelheim…"
"Cloud wasn't a SOLDIER?" Jessie looked over at the blonde swordsman curiously. "But his eyes…"
Cloud looked away from her, scratching the back of his neck and Zack decided to step in. "Joining SOLDIER's not the only way to get Mako eyes." He pointed out, before pressing on. "When we got there, and we went to check out the reactor, Tifa was our guide. Freya was in town too, because she'd been sent to scout ahead."
The huntress was sitting on one of the beds, but now she stood, leaving her shotgun propped against the wall as she joined the discussion. "They called the SOLDIERs in because the monsters had gotten too numerous in the area. At least that was the official reason. The dragons were pretty dangerous."
Zack continued "There were a few of those, but when we got to the reactor, we found something way worse than dragons. We found Jenova."
"What's Jenova?" Barret asked.
"It's the source of Shinra's Jenova cells, the biological component for creating SOLDIERs. At least that was what I found out later," Freya spoke up again. "According to what I know, the body was originally found frozen in a crater, far to the North, and believed to be that of an Ancient. Professor Hojo kept it in a mako tank at the Nibelheim reactor. The village also houses the old Shinra mansion, the location where he and the original team behind the SOLDIER program conducted their initial experiments, among other things…" She said the last part quietly as though not sure whether Zack had wanted her input.
Zack gave her a reassuring nod and then went on. "Sephiroth had been told all his life that Jenova was his mother, and when he finally saw her, or it, he locked himself up in the library at the Manor. He was in there for about a week, and then… he'd gone complete completely insane. He was rambling on about how he'd take Jenova with him and they'd go seek out the Promised Land together, whatever that meant. As we said, Nibelheim burned to the ground."
"Why didn't you stop him?" Barret demanded.
Zack looked down at the floor, sadly. "I didn't get there in time. I chased him up to the reactor but by then it was too late to save the town. That was when I saw that Tifa had gone ahead of me."
The dark-haired martial artist nodded, clenching her fists angrily at the memory. It seemed to be all she could do to remain calm as she spoke. "I was furious at what Sephiroth had done. He'd killed my father. I was so angry, all I could think about was revenge."
"By the time I got there, she was hurt, and Sephiroth was in the room with the tank where they were keeping Jenova. I had tried to get him to see reason, but by that point, he was beyond talking to. I fought with him, but in the end, he beat me up pretty bad. That was when Cloud showed up." He looked over at his friend to see if he could gauge how comfortable he was with having the rest of the story retold, but Cloud was still just listening.
Zack continued. "He picked up my sword, and stabbed Sephiroth in the back with it. We were both hoping that'd be the end of it, but while Cloud was tending to Tifa, he came back out and I told him to finish it. Even wounded, Sephiroth was dangerous. He… ran him through with the Masamune."
Tifa's eyes widened as she looked at Cloud, who nodded to confirm it was true.
"I don't know how he did it," Zack went on, "But somehow, he managed to pull himself down to the catwalk and use the sword as leverage to throw Sephiroth into the core. The last thing I remember before I blacked out was seeing Cloud fall down the steps in front of me."
"I only got there just as Cloud went in the second time." Freya added. "Tifa's martial arts teacher followed us up there and he got her out, but Zack and Cloud couldn't be moved. I called in a rescue team… but… That was when Professor Hojo arrived. I had thought we were going to be helping the survivors, even as we covered up the destruction. I didn't think we would…" She stopped at that point.
"Would what?" Tifa asked.
Zack shot Cloud a questioning glance and Cloud nodded slowly. Once permission had been granted, Zack spoke up again. "Professor Hojo is the reason Cloud looks like a SOLDIER. We were taken down into the Shinra Mansion basement and he used us as test subjects in his experiments."
Even Barret looked shocked at this pronouncement. "So your tellin' me that Spiky here got made into a SOLDIER for some kinda freaky experiment? That is some messed up #$%." Zack wanted to facepalm. Did this guy even know the meaning of the word tact?
Tifa was now completely horrified, which only seemed to serve to make Cloud more uncomfortable as she walked over to him. "Was that what you meant earlier, when you said you didn't remember what happened?" She asked.
Cloud was rubbing the back of his neck again. "Like I said, the next thing I knew, it'd been five years and the Turks had caught us. I only really know what Zack told me about it…"
Zack nodded again when Tifa looked to him for confirmation. "I'm not going to get into details right now. Neither of us were in great shape by the end of it, but Cloud had mako poisoning really bad when I got us out. We were on the run for a good while, and we got caught by the Turks at one point, which is where we ran into Freya again, along with the friends we'll be meeting tomorrow. That's a story all by itself, but we've been living in Mideel ever since, keeping a low profile and finding work where we can. I think that's enough for now."
Barret gave Zack a stern look. "I can understand why ya wouldn' wanna talk about that in front'o us strangers. Still, why ain't ya tryin' to do something about it an' fight?"
Zack stood up straight at that point, stepping into the center of the room, still calm, but unyielding. "Because, at the moment, there are more important things going on. Shinra's done some awful stuff, and if I ever find Hojo, he's going to wish he'd never been born, but not everyone in the company's a bad guy. If they leave us alone, we'll do the same. If they come after us, well, Odin help them."
"An' what about the planet?" Barret walked over to Zack, leaning over him indignantly. "Did it eva occur to ya that all them #$%*&# reactors are sucking the planet dry?"
Zack took a moment to consider what Barret was saying, though he met the man's gaze unflinchingly. He knew much more about the negative repercussions of mako exposure than most, but mako reactors in and of themselves didn't seem to be harmful as long as you kept your distance, and didn't house evil abominations within their depths. In his experience, it was crazy AVALANCHE leaders like Fuhito, who didn't care about collateral damage, who were a lot more dangerous by comparison, but he wasn't about to tell that to Barret. "Honestly, me and Cloud have had enough mako to last us a lifetime, and we're a lot more worried about Sephiroth right now. If you want to come with us to figure out what's going on, then that's fine, otherwise, you can do what you want. Our hideout in Mideel is open to you if you want to hang there for a while, or you can go elsewhere. Just don't do anything to make Marlene cry again."
Barret looked further annoyed. "Listen here SOLDIER, I don' appreciate you tellin' me what to do, especially about Marlene. I'm fight'n for her after all." He turned to Jessie and Tifa. "What about you?"
"I haven't decided," Jessie said.
Tifa held up a gloved fist. "I'm going to go with Zack and Cloud. Nibelheim was my village too and I want to find out if it's really him."
"Then I'll go with ya. We ain't gettin' offa this train we're on till we see it to the end'o the line." Barret decided. He looked to Jessie. "Do ya think I could ask ya to look after Marlene a little longer?"
"I don't mind. Just don't go getting yourselves killed," Jessie replied softly.
"I guess we're decided then," Zack said. "We'll rest up for tonight and leave in the morning. I'll have Cissnei take Jessie and Marlene back to our place after she drops us off on the other side of the mountains."
As the others proceeded to get ready for bed, Zack noticed Tifa walking up to him, something clearly on her mind. "I know when we saw each other last, we didn't exactly part on good terms…" he started, "But if there was anything I could have done to fix what happened, I would have…"
Tifa shook her head. "You couldn't have known Sephiroth would do that, and actually, I wanted to apologize."
Zack shrugged. "Things happen. I understand."
"Still, I'm sorry…"
"No problem."
Tifa looked like she was about to turn away when she paused. "That's… not the only thing."
"Oh?"
She brought her voice down to a whisper. "Thank you. And not just for helping us escape. For Cloud too."
Zack offered her a small smile. "It's what friends do."
December 18th [ ν ] – εуλ 0007
It took slightly longer to get to the Chocobo farm than it did to ride to Midgar, on account of the fact that there were no Chocobos on hand for the return trip. But even so, they managed to make good time and had been able to stop for camp fairly close. It was mid-morning the next day when they reached the farm again, and as soon as they walked past it, they found Cissnei waiting for them, just as Zack had instructed. She wasn't alone however. As Zack approached with the others, he could see Aerith and Kunsel seated on either side of her in the open hatch leading to the passenger compartment. Zack waved and as soon as she saw him, Aerith rushed out and threw her arms around him. Kunsel and Cissnei followed at a more sedate pace.
"We missed you," Aerith whispered.
"I missed you too, is everyone okay back home?"
She nodded in confirmation and Kunsel took that opportunity to speak up. "Glad to see you made it back."
Zack flashed him a grin as Aerith loosened her hold. "Those Shinra goons didn't know what hit them. We were better than a bunch of Wutai ninjas, weren't we Cloud?"
"It was really something." Cloud agreed.
They shared a laugh as the others came closer. Introductions were soon made, and once that was out of the way, Kunsel's expression became serious. "Is it true what Cissnei said about how Sephiroth might be alive?"
"That's what I want to find out." Zack said. "We'll head over the mountains and then Ciss'll take Marlene and Jessie home. She'll meet us at that private landing pad outside of Junon when she comes back for us."
There was no reason to wait around, so everyone piled in and soon, they were away. Cissnei flew low, to avoid any radar detection, but everyone who was near a window kept their eyes peeled for any sign that someone had spotted them. Marlene was fascinated by the contraption and Barret held her steady so she could peer out the window from where they were seated. The look of wonder on her face at the fact that they were indeed flying hundreds of feet in the air was enough to soften even the most hardened warrior, and those who were in the passenger compartment found it hard not to smile at her antics. Freya even let her look into the cockpit for a little while.
The ground flew by underneath them at a dizzying pace, first over the grasslands near the Chocobo farm and then the marshes. The water glittered where it wasn't obscured by swamp scum, creating the illusion of light reflecting back up at the helicopter through a green curtain. It wasn't long after that before the mountains appeared, filled with rocky crags and Zack thought he could see the entrance to a cave system off in the distance…
…Was there a Zolom poised at the cave mouth?
By the time he looked again, it was too late, and he was left to speculate on whether his eyes had been distracted by the glare. It was only a short while longer before the mountains thinned out again and Cissnei finally brought the helicopter down to the ground.
Everyone who was leaving climbed out as the rotors stopped, but Zack paused when he saw that Marlene had come to the door and was pulling lightly on the folds of Cloud's pants. He looked down at her curiously, though Zack was sure he was trying not to let his motion sickness show. As he watched, the little girl looked up at his friend seriously. "Cloud, you and Zack'll take care of Tifa and Daddy, right?"
Cloud seemed surprised by this, looking at Zack for help. Zack just grinned and nodded. Finally he looked back at the little girl. "We'll try." He said.
Marlene smiled, apparently satisfied and went to the cockpit. Cissnei had offered to let her ride up front on the way back. "You know, she thinks we're her heroes," Zack commented as Marlene went out of earshot.
"She does?"
"It's obvious." Zack chuckled. "Did you see the way she was looking at you?" They walked a little ways away and Barret waved back at the helicopter where he could see Marlene sitting next to Cissnei, and Jessie behind them.
"Don't worry," Aerith said kindly as she walked over to Barret. "The lodge is a safe place, they'll be fine."
"I hope so," Barret muttered.
Kunsel was consulting a map, attempting to get his bearings and Zack went over to take a look. The brown-haired SOLDIER had told him about the map he'd hung up in his apartment at headquarters, but he hadn't seen it before. It looked dog-eared and he saw that several notes had been scrawled in the margins. Holes from pushpins were everywhere. It stood as a testament to how dedicated his friend had been in trying to find him. "So this is the map, isn't it."
"How else was I supposed to get an idea of where to look?" Kunsel asked.
"Fair point," Zack admitted, taking hold of one side of the parchment so Kunsel could have an easier time plotting their route.
"I think we should stick to this road here, it'll take us to lower Junon, but at the very least, it'll get us there quick and we can start searching with minimum fuss, assuming we can stay out of sight." Kunsel indicated the route with his now free right hand.
"What about that other road by… um… what does that say?… Fort Condor?" Zack asked, pointing with his left.
"The problem there is it's a holdout for anti-Shinra forces and it's currently under siege." Kunsel supplied. "Not a good place to go if we don't want to attract attention."
"Makes sense." Freya had walked up behind them as they folded up the map. "So, are we moving?
"Yeah." Zack raised his voice a little. "Let's get going guys."
He'd barely walked a few steps when Nanaki paused, sniffing the air, his ears twitching. "Wait a moment." He said.
"What is it?" Zack asked.
"We're not alone." Nanaki said. "I smell someone else nearby."
Zack and Freya went for their weapons at the same time and everyone else followed suit as they eyed the bushes. Muscles tensed as the foliage quivered, and then Cloud dodged out of the way, pulling Tifa with her as a shuriken flew out of the leafy branches. It hurtled through the air before it boomeranged back towards its point of origin. As it neared the trees, a young girl of about teenage years with short black hair jumped out into the open as she landed in a crouch. "All right, hand over all your materia and no one'll get hurt!" She looked at the crowd surrounding her and that was when Zack realized she looked familiar.
"…Yuffie?" Someone else had spoken the name along with him and he looked over to realize that Freya had that same look of recognition on her face. As his eyes met hers, they paused and then asked the same question in unison. "…You know her too?"
Upon realizing what had just happened, they laughed and then Freya said "You first."
"I met her in Wutai," Zack replied, "I don't know how she got my PHS number but then she started spamming me with these crazy treasure hunting missions…"
"She was that spammer you told me about?" Kunsel asked.
No one else had lowered their weapons, but the mood had been totally shattered and even Yuffie seemed to realize it. She was staring between the SOLDIER and the Turk, somewhat at a loss for how to proceed. Finally, she seemed to regain her composure as she too realized the identity of her opponents. "You're that… ugly SOLDIER guy!"
"Ugly?" Aerith raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, I totally kicked his ass in Wutai and then I made him go get stuff for me."
"I seem to remember that a little differently," Zack observed, turning back to Freya. "So what about you?"
"I also met her in Wutai, but we were clearing out AVALANCHE headquarters at the time." The lady Turk shrugged. "We didn't exactly part on the best terms. She got really upset when she found out I was with Shinra."
Yuffie turned her wrath upon the lady Turk. "That's right! You betrayed me. You said you were there to help when really you were working for our enemy!"
"Betrayed you?" Freya scoffed. "You never asked who I was working for!"
The treasure princess scowled. "And what are you doing out here anyway?" She demanded. "On another mission for Shinra?"
"Actually, she's not with Shinra anymore," Zack said, trying to defuse the situation. "None of us is."
"But I'll bet you have materia!" Yuffie walked over to Cloud and Tifa, looking them over as though trying to detect where they might be hiding them.
Zack sighed. "We're not giving you any. And it's probably better if you try not to attack anyone else. Come on guys, let's go."
"Oh, running away?" Yuffie hurried over to Zack like she was going to try to punch him. He put an arm out and her blows windmilled in the air. "Come on! Aren't you gonna fight me like a man?"
The others stifled a laugh as Zack looked down at the girl with raised eyebrows. "I'm not really in the mood right now, besides, I'd probably hurt you," he said at last, stepping around her and gesturing that the others should follow him.
Yuffie turned back to Cloud since apparently she figured he didn't look as sure of the situation and punched the air in front of him. "Stay and FIGHT I said! What's the matter? You're pretty scared of me, huh?"
Her assessment of Cloud was wrong, because he gave her an answer so flat no one could have missed the sarcasm. "…Petrified." He too, walked on by.
She put her hands on her hips and leered at the remaining group. "Just as I thought, what did you expect with my skills? If you feel up to it, maybe we can go another round. Later!"
Zack spared a glance behind him and saw that the ninja had not moved. Seeing his eyes on her, she said "I'm really gonna leave! REALLY!"
That was when Zack realized what it was she wanted and an idea formed in his mind. "Hang on a sec." He walked back over towards her.
"What, you have something for me?" Yuffie asked. "I know you want my help, because I'm so good!"
Zack grinned. "If you say so."
Yuffie pretended to consider it. "You've really put me in a spot. Hmm, what should I do?... All right, I'll go with you."
Zack ruffled the girl's hair, and with a laugh, he turned back in the direction the group was headed.
"Hey! HEY!" Yuffie called after him. "Aren't you going to introduce me to everyone?"
"They already know your name." Freya called back to her.
As they walked, Kunsel caught up with Zack. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"
Zack nodded. "Trust me. It'll be better if she's with us than if she's running around getting into trouble. We've got enough eyes between the eight of us to keep a look out if she tries anything."
Kunsel looked back at the ninja as she appeared to be watching the others with interest. "I hope you're right."
As they neared Junon, Freya paused to put a call in with Valerie. After some discussion over the PHS, she rejoined everyone else and told them that Allen would meet them just outside Junon and smuggle them in. It wasn't too much longer before they caught sight of the gigantic cannon hanging out over the water, guarding the central shipping routes that ran between the city and other locations along the western seaboard. They were almost into town when they found Allen, the Turk who wielded nunchaku, standing by a van in plainclothes, his blonde hair obscured by a newsboy cap. As the man spotted Freya he waved them over. "I hear you've been keeping yourself busy."
Freya shrugged and offered him a grin. "Well, you know how it is. Some things just can't be helped."
The other Turk returned it with one of his own. "I didn't think we'd see you again so soon." His expression turned serious. "So what's this I hear about the General still being alive?"
"We haven't confirmed it for sure." Zack joined the conversation at that point. "But what we saw looked an awful lot like him."
Allen looked thoughtful as he reached for the keys to the van in the pocket of his shirt. "I guess you would know wouldn't you."
"I'd like to think so."
Allen nodded. "All right, Freya, you'll ride shotgun, we've got some things to talk about. The rest of you can get in the back. It'll be crowded, but it's the best we got."
After Allen unlocked the doors he ushered everyone inside. It was a tight fit, but somehow, everyone managed to find a place and soon they were underway. At least, it seemed they were underway until they discovered something rather problematic about their new companion.
"Ooh… I don't feel so good…" Yuffie moaned from the spot where she'd been scrunched between Cloud and Aerith.
"You get motion sick too?" Cloud asked after a bit.
Yuffie nodded. Since Zack was one of the closest to the front, he leaned toward the driver's seat. "So how long is it to your place?"
"It'll be about forty minutes, once we account for traffic and getting up the elevators," Allen answered, glancing worriedly in the rearview mirror at the very ill ninja. "We haven't quite reached the city limits yet."
As Zack turned back around, he saw Cloud reach into his pocket and hand Yuffie some medicine. Surprisingly, he didn't seem to be suffering quite as much. Zack wondered absently if he was gaining more of a resistance to it, having spent so much time in the helicopter lately. Yuffie looked up at him with gratitude before downing it.
"Maybe we ought to put her up front too," Zack suggested.
"You're probably right," Freya agreed, much to the relief of everyone else in the van. Allen brought the vehicle to a halt so the Lady Turk and the ninja could switch and then they continued onward, crisis thankfully averted. No one could really see outside except those who were up front as they passed through Junon's undercity, but it wasn't long before Allen rolled down the window to speak to a guard, handing him an ID to look at and claiming he was going up to his house on one of the upper tiers. Soon afterward, he had pulled the van onto an elevator and they were going up. Zack really hoped they'd be able to keep things as quiet as they'd managed to keep them in Midgar. The last thing they needed was to have every SOLDIER and trooper in Junon coming after them.
Yay! New party member! And Aerith and Kunsel are back too! I missed them as much as Zack did! ^^
See ya next chapter!